Recovery Support: Why it’s Important

Taking the steps to go to treatment and getting help is one of the first and most difficult steps in beginning a life-long journey in recovery. We learn so much about ourselves and begin to heal from pain and disappointment of some of our decisions in the past. We learn that we can be better, and we do get better. We begin to change some of our lifestyle choices, and we can see that our future holds beauty and empowerment. One thing that is often overlooked is the benefits of recovery support after treatment.

What is recovery support and why is it important?

Recovery support is not only about having a mentor or someone you can talk to about the struggles and inevitable difficulties in life, but they also provide a means of making our transition process a little less stressful. I sat in a room yesterday at a local treatment center and asked these amazing young women what their goals are – if they were interested in going to college, going directly back into the workforce or what they wanted to do. Many said they wanted to go back to school, which is amazing! However, my next question was, what are your steps to achieve that goal and get started? They all had a slight blank look that resonated with me. Here are these amazing people who have dreams, goals, and ambitions and they have no idea how to achieve them. I remember feeling the same way when I was at that place in my life, transitioning out of treatment and wanting to create a new life.

We have so many options for treatment services, inpatient and outpatient treatment, and individual counseling, but why don’t we have a lot of options for people who need guidance and tools to help them create an amazing life? Why don’t we have people to empower people and show them how to do the amazing things in their life that they truly want to accomplish? I still think about all the people that I know, including myself, who struggled and hit barriers when navigating the college system, and that needed assistance to help find stable housing and employment. These are REAL barriers that people face when they are complete treatment.

The longer we leave recovery support services out of the equation, the longer we will continue to see people struggle.

Why is it so difficult for people to get assistance? Why do we not have services for people who want to go to college, or find employment? There are areas in which these services are actually available, Georgia is a great example of peer to peer supports programs. They offer support, compassion, and assistance to help people further their life goals. There are few other states that offer this type of assistance after treatment. Life of Purpose offers this support while attending treatment, this helps the transition process, with fewer potential barriers.

Supporting a full continuum of care is important for success and the life-long journey of recovery. I have seen many people who were transitioning out of treatment, struggle and hit barriers and they gave up. We need to advocate for this continuum of care in all of our communities. People should have access to services to empower them to have the ability to work for their dreams and future. The longer we leave recovery support services out of the equation, the longer we will continue to see people struggle. Changing this and developing options for empowerment will help all of us in the community and also the individual. Let’s make it easier to support people in their recovery by having these much-needed services across the country.

If you are in recovery and need these services, talk to your treatment provider, tell them you need support to continue your recovery journey. It is your life and you need to fight for your life and the services and support you need.

At Life of Purpose we understand that recovery from a substance use disorder is made possible in part by recovery allies. To honor our amazing allies, we are starting a series of posts called #MuggleMondays. Theses posts will be featuring different "muggles" who help make recovery possible.

The term muggle has derives from a pop culture reference to the Harry Potter series. In the series, the wizards refer to their non-wizard counterparts as muggles. Our founder and CEO Andrew Burki has made this reference so many times that it has begun to catch on.